African Conference on Human Trafficking Opens with Call for Collaborative Approaches

The conference, a follow up of the first one held last year (2018) in the capital city of Nigeria, Abuja, has been spearheaded by the Santa Marta Group, an international alliance of leaders in law enforcement and Church from around the world working together with civil society to counter human trafficking.

In his good will message to the participants in the two-day Nairobi conference, the president of the Santa Marta Group, Vincent Cardinal Nichols acknowledged the value of multi-agency working in addressing the menace of trading human beings and wrote, “We are so much stronger when we stand together.”

A June 2019 US report on human trafficking describes it as “one of the most heinous crimes on Earth … robbing a staggering 24.9 million people of their freedom and basic human dignity.”

Well Over 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders annually.

In Africa, human trafficking is ranked among “the most prevailing transnational crime issues.”

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Convened under the theme “sensitizing local communities on human trafficking in Africa,” the Nairobi conference, which concluded Thursday, October 3 sought to develop “strategies for pastoral care of victims and the nurturing of partnership with state institutions in Africa” in the fight against human trafficking.     

Highlighting the efforts, which the Kenyan government has undertaken in creating awareness about human trafficking, The children’s officer from the ministry of labour and social protection, Mercy Karanja told ACI Africa, “July is dedicated for awareness creation countrywide through social media, local TV and radio stations.”

“The government conducted public awareness campaigns at community levels, sensitizing the local community leaders on human trafficking,” Ms. Karanja disclosed and added, the government has provision for the necessary support such as shelter, food, counseling, reintegration & economic empowerment among others either directly or through referrals.”

On the contribution of the Catholic Church in Kenya, the deputy general secretary of KCCB Fr. Lucas Ongesa told ACI Africa, “The Church has established institutions of rescue protection and prevention of human trafficking like, rescue homes and it (the Church) has also created good network to mitigate this reality of human trafficking.”

In an interview with ACI Africa from the sidelines of the Nairobi Conference, KCCB Chairman, Archbishop Anyolo challenged African governments “to increase job opportunities for young people after education, for this is a major cause of human trafficking.”

“There is need to balance education and job opportunities. This is why they (young people) go out in search of greener pasture and others are cheated and trapped,” Archbishop Anyolo emphasized.